less torture.less spying on my own band. to stop drinking again.
hahaha

Hmm. Less drinking. Less meat (I try to eat NO MEAT AT ALL). More sports. More political activity. More concerts/festivals. Spend more time with friends and family. Get a new job.

Awww soo many... ;)

Hope you´ll have a great party tonight. Best wishes for 2006.

Cheers,
Tanja

Something tells me I'll get blasted for this . . .

You guys are one of my favorite bands, and I love you to death, but sometimes I think your Bush-bashing is kind of mindless.

Am I the only one who actually feels safer with him in office (I mean, compared to Kerry or Gore)?

Oh . . . by the way, Happy 2006.

Can't wait for the new record.

Why do you feel safer with him in office? And I fail to see how it's mindless bashing if it's all true. Not trying to be argumentative here, just curious.

"Why do you feel safer with him in office?"

I don't see Kerry or Gore or any emotion-over-reason politician doing a better job in the War on Terror, and for anyone who says Bush is circumventing the Constitution, the left has been doing it in increasingly dangerous doses for decades now (see: welfare, Social Security, Medicare, the Communications Decency Act, and the reforms made by Clinton which facilitated the Enron/Arthur Andersen debacle).

"And I fail to see how it's mindless bashing if it's all true."

I think that's a dangerous thing to say. Define "torture" and "spying on his own people," and give me a shred of evidence that substantiates these claims, as well as the claim that he is drinking too much. (Drinking at all won't do here; if I were in his position, I would be having a Scotch or two as well).

"Not trying to be argumentative here, just curious."

No, I understand, and I appreciate you not taking a blind, fuck-you approach to this. It's good to keep an open dialogue, because I think political beliefs are useless unless they can be changed in the face of new information or new perspectives. I know mine have; drastic changes occurred during and right after college, and I feel that my view is far more informed and refined than it was when I was nineteen.

By the way, is this a member of the band posting anonymously? Or do you just not post often and didn't feel like putting your name up?

Thank you Alex. I will be sure to send you a tortured Iraqi's finger as a token of the Bush White Houses' appreciation for your support.

well, my new years resolution is to stay on thread, and not go off on retarded tangents that cause silly arguments, that neither side can really prove they've won, and ultimately resort to petty naming calling (my personal favorite way to discuss political matters) you bastards, and the stop using excessive dependent causes.
bahumbug

Happy Holidays to ALL! Let's keep hoping...

I don't remeber anything from last night but I wish for my president and all politics in serbia to get a f*** out of this country and to stoP steel and torturd this poor people.....f***** son of a bitch......sorry about a language...
HAPPY NEW YEAR TO ALL.....

mARINA

my eyes burn, my stomach doesn't really feel good and neither does my head...
HAPPY NEW YEAR EVERYBODY! :D

well, i think the world would be a safer place if the iraq weren't in the state that it is today. sure, saddam was definitely a real asshole, but i guess he wasn't much worse than the assholes that govern the countries around iraq. if you refer to western standarts there is not a single democracy in the whole middle east region except israel. egypt is a presidental-dictatorship, saudi-arabia and jordania are monarchies, syria is a dictatorship, too, lebanon is still quite chaotic and the iran, well i'm tired of these freaks and their anti-semitic crap.
without the war on iraq the train-bombings in london and madrid would not have happened. the world isn't a safer place since saddam is gone, it is a more dangerous place instead...
there are more people dead because of the war and terrorist attacks, than died during saddams regime.
most europeans think that bush is the worst president the usa had for quite some time. not just the war in iraq, he also caused a huge deficite. the us government is spending much more money than they get from the people. this is definitely bad policy. the german government(which i don't like., too as a matter of fact) does this, too, but this is because the have/had to rebuilt eastern germany and not to fight a war that a) was against international law and b)can't be won because they startetd it without a plan to end it.
bush really sucks, but so do most political leaders...

maybe for the future, for my own party, i'll tell people what democracy is, seen as 50 men in a room dont know what to do when a terrorist attack occurs, THEY GO ON HOLIDAY!!, oh the pride,
dont check out the UK

belated happy new year!

less drinking, more sports, only going to concerts of bands I really love anymore :o) hope to see you again in austria this year!

Finally, someone puts a little thought into their response.

"well, i think the world would be a safer place if the iraq weren't in the state that it is today. sure, saddam was definitely a real asshole, but i guess he wasn't much worse than the assholes that govern the countries around iraq. if you refer to western standarts there is not a single democracy in the whole middle east region except israel. egypt is a presidental-dictatorship, saudi-arabia and jordania are monarchies, syria is a dictatorship, too, lebanon is still quite chaotic and the iran, well i'm tired of these freaks and their anti-semitic crap."

Agreed. However, it is important to look at Iraq as the first step, not the last. Syria and Iran need to be straightened out as well. This is the War on Terror, not the War on Iraq.

"without the war on iraq the train-bombings in london and madrid would not have happened. the world isn't a safer place since saddam is gone, it is a more dangerous place instead..."

I would argue, though, that it's getting safer every day. And whether the train bombings would have happened without our invasion is debatable; 9/11 (and the first WTC attack) happened well before the war. Terrorism existed before this shit, and it will continue unless someone does something about it. I actually have a ton of respect for Bush, as most people would probably back away under all the fire he's taken for this.

"there are more people dead because of the war and terrorist attacks, than died during saddams regime."

Oh, sure. I haven't checked in a while: What's the tally on Kurds in mass graves -- killed by Saddam's regime? 300,000? 500,000?

Funny how no one who opposes the war will ever let the word "Kurd" enter their mind.

"most europeans think that bush is the worst president the usa had for quite some time."

That's because they're not American. Who cares what Europe's opinion of OUR president is? I fail to see how any American could possibly consider Bush worse than Clinton. When G.W. commits treason, it might be up for debate.

"not just the war in iraq, he also caused a huge deficite. the us government is spending much more money than they get from the people. this is definitely bad policy. the german government(which i don't like., too as a matter of fact) does this, too, but this is because the have/had to rebuilt eastern germany and not to fight a war that a) was against international law and b)can't be won because they startetd it without a plan to end it."

Okay, now you've ventured into the realm of the ridiculous.

"bush really sucks, but so do most political leaders..."

Agreed. There are plenty of reasons not to like Bush. But I really don't feel Iraq or the Patriot Act are good ones. Research the Patriot Act, think bigger-picture about the war (and terrorism), and -- for the love of God -- stop watching Michael Moore propa -- er, "documentaries."

"I fail to see how any American could possibly consider Bush worse than Clinton. When G.W. commits treason, it might be up for debate."

Though Clinton didn't do much in office, other than Monica Lewinsky, he wasn't a bad president. what did he do that hurt america?

clinton was 10x the "christian" president than bush ever will be. and that's even taking the blow jobs into account.

"Though Clinton didn't do much in office, other than Monica Lewinsky, he wasn't a bad president. what did he do that hurt america?"

Maybe my comment about treason was too subtle.

Want more in addition to treason and the Lewinsky scandal? The aforementioned reforms which facilitated Enron et al fucking a whole lot of people out of a whole lot of money (with little or no possibility of reimbursement) . . . plus Whitewater, HillaryCare, actively covering for North Korea while they went nuclear, pandering to Saddam Hussein while he held his own people hostage, failure to enact new security measures in the wake of the World Trade Center bombing, the Communications Decency Act (a rollback of First Amendment rights), and -- drumroll, please -- lying to the American people under oath, an offense for which he was impeached.

Good guy, though. Really.

I totally agree with "Andy"!!!

Alex you want war with ervery single one of these states in the middle east...that could not be right...an that do not make the world safer, we see last year london for example...and what where initiate when the usa bombs iran?? hate and we much more terrorist than with a peacefull politic...
sorry for my very bad english, i am from germany, an i hate it in school :)

@Alex:
do you really think about the iraq as a first step? half of the regimes in the area (saudi arabia, jordania, egypt, pakistan) are ALLYS of the usa.

about the london and madrid bombings: in both confession-mails the terrorists said, that the attacks were a reaction to the involvement of spanish and british forces in iraq. it is very probable that without the war on iraq at least the bombing in madrid would not have happened because spain was never one of the countries that received threats from islamistic terrorists.

about the kurds: where do you have this numbers from? if you can proof this numbers, i'll have to give up this argument. i had much lower figures in mind, though. something about 30000 people. still ugly enough.
if saddam would really have killed half a million people, this would be a genocide that rivals the extincton of the german(not european, i know that they killed far more people) jews by the Nazis. then it would be a crime of bush senior and clinton not to do anything against saddam earlier.

about the opinion of the rest of the world: perfect example of american unilateralism and one of the reasons why the usa are the no1 target of terrorists. if the us-government started to care more about their image in the world - not by PR-Actions, but by real measures to eliminate poverty- the usa themselves would be safer.the usa aren't the only nation in the world, and sometimes it's a good thing to consider the opinion of others. looking at things from an other point of view gives one often better possibilities to decide(in football and politics).
since i'm from europe, the only way i can judge G.W. Bush is from my european point of view. i don't say that my judgement is better than yours but as i may be dangerously underinformed or missinformed (by michael moore, if you want, but i don't really like the guy, too), you may be manipulated by the propaganda of your government.

about me being ridiculous: at what point am i ridiculous? afaik the financial situation of the US-government was balanced during the clinton administration. this is a goal most countries try to reach, but fail to achieve. ( btw: one big point for clinton!) nowadays the us-government has a huge deficite, which is bad. the current us-government spends lots of money on the war on iraq and on the so called homeland security, but not much for the common people. do you know that money that should be used to repair and maintain the -oh fuck, what's the english word for deiche?-, well, the walls that should have safed new orleans from the water, ended in up in some interior security programm? this means the whole katrina-disaster was in one way or the other caused by bushs homeland-security programme. furtheron, and sorry here i have to use a michael moore argument: where were the helicopters of the national guard to evacuate the people of new orleans after the city was flooded? in iraq!

still about me being ridiculous: look into the charta of the UN and you'll find out that it is against international law, to start a offensive war.
i said the war can't be won. okay, this was a little bit exageratted, but it is a fact that the us-army went into iraq without a real plan what to do after the demise of saddams regime. till now almost 2000 us-soldiers and about 35000 civilians had to pay for this misscalculation with their lives. eventually the war will be won , but this day is far away and lots of people will die before.
do you know that the us-army at the moment would not be able to counter a north korean attack on south korea, because too many us-soldiers are in iraq, prepare to go there or just came back from there and are not combat ready? the usa are at the moment not in the position to fight any other war in fact or just to start another big peace-keeping mission, even if they had to. so it will take very long too, until something can be done against syria or iran.

something about your first posting: you said that you've just finished college. good for you, you will probably be well off, get a good job and all. but: during the years of the bush administration a lot of jobs in the middle salary sector were destroyed and replaced by low salary jobs. the so called middle class is much smaller than it used to be before. for you it is probably easy to be somehow pro-bush, when it comes to interior issues, but what about all the others whose parents can't effort college? the peopke that a lot of the songs by the band that belongs to this very website, are about. poverty in america is increasing -says time-magazine- and this is realy a shame for the richest country in the world.

you are so right andy.....

i am sadly that my english is so bad, that i cant really say all that i want to say :=)

To see more great bands live!
I'm so glad BSF will come to Europe again! March 17th they will be playing in Holland! Hell yeah!

"That's because they're not American. Who cares what Europe's opinion of OUR president is? I fail to see how any American could possibly consider Bush worse than Clinton."

I'm american and I think Bush is a horrible president.

"do you really think about the iraq as a first step? half of the regimes in the area (saudi arabia, jordania, egypt, pakistan) are ALLYS of the usa."

Four nations is not half the Middle East. And Iraq is a first step; Syria or Iran will probably be next (though I would rather invade France :) ).

"the attacks were a reaction to the involvement of spanish and british forces in iraq."

My point is that attacks -- even ones worse than these -- were happening well before the war.

"about the kurds: where do you have this numbers from? if you can proof this numbers, i'll have to give up this argument."

I hope you're kidding . . . (sigh). Okay . . .

"The U.S.-led occupation authority in Iraq has said that at least 300,000 people are buried in mass graves in Iraq. Human rights officials put the number closer to 500,000, and some Iraqi political parties estimate more than 1 million were executed":
http://www.signonsandiego.com/news/world/iraq/memorial/20031210-1116-iraq-executions.html

"Human Rights Watch estimates that Saddam's 1987-1988 campaign of terror against the Kurds killed at least 50,000 and possibly as many as 100,000 Kurds": http://www.whitehouse.gov/infocus/iraq/news/20030404-1.html

61,000 in Baghdad alone (first article again): http://www.signonsandiego.com/news/world/iraq/memorial/20031210-1116-iraq-executions.html

A special grave containing women and children, including toddlers clutching toys: http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/3738368.stm

"Human rights organizations estimate that more than 300,000 people, mainly Kurds and Shiite Muslims, were killed and buried in mass graves during Saddam's 23-year rule": http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,179819,00.html

"if the us-government started to care more about their image in the world - not by PR-Actions, but by real measures to eliminate poverty- the usa themselves would be safer."

This is a classic example of convincing yourself that The Man is lying to you and you know what's really going on. How should we eliminate poverty? Foreign aid? Doesn't work. What does work? According to an extensive study on wealth disparities between rich and poor countries conducted by UCLA Professor Richard Roll (as well as an earlier assertion by Nobel-winning economist Milton Friedman, "Political freedoms go hand-in-hand with economic development." Democracy is an important factor in the economic prosperity of the majority of wealthy countries.

Sounds like we're doing exactly what you request.

"you may be manipulated by the propaganda of your government."

Or by the evil propaganda of fact and logic, as opposed to irrational emotion and catchy little platitudes.

"about me being ridiculous: at what point am i ridiculous?"

The point at which you expect no financial hardship imposed by war AND you accuse the administration of having no plan to end the war. Also, you make reference to the war being against international law. What about Saddam's violations -- which, I might add, no one else planned to do anything about?

"the current us-government spends lots of money on the war on iraq and on the so called homeland security, but not much for the common people. do you know that money that should be used to . . ."

Stop right there. I know you're not American, so you may not have an extensive knowledge of our Constitution, but the only thing the Fed is authorized to spend money on is defense (as in the military). The city and state governments had the responsibility of maintaining their deiches (the word is "dikes" or "levees," in case you're still interested), and they failed miserably. Don't blame Bush.

"do you know that the us-army at the moment would not be able to counter a north korean attack on south korea, because too many us-soldiers are in iraq, prepare to go there or just came back from there and are not combat ready?"

Not only did I not know this, I have serious doubts regarding its validity. Where did you read this? You can't make such a claim (one that would be statistically verifiable) without some sort of proof. If you can back this up -- like I did with the Kurds -- I'll concede on this point.

"you said that you've just finished college."

No, I think you assumed that. I finished a couple years ago and have worked on indie films and waited tables for a while, so I'm not the rich, it's-not-my-problem conservative you think I am. I'm 25 and make less than you think.

"for you it is probably easy to be somehow pro-bush, when it comes to interior issues, but what about all the others whose parents can't effort college?"

See above for the "easy to be . . . pro-Bush" response. As for my education, you are mistaken in assuming that my parents bankrolled my education. I worked hard to stay in school, about 30 hours a week (add that to a full course load) and student loans that I'll be paying off for years.

In America, too many people have what talk show host and political writer Larry Elder calls a "victicrat" mentality: They do not feel responsible for their own lives, and they want things given to them for nothing.

Healthcare is not a right. Education is not a right. We need to take a little responsibility and WORK for these things.

Well, it seems they've shut me up.

I just tried to post a lengthy little response to Andy, and it seems that the official site for a band that promotes free speech and protest has decided that my comments might be "malicious" (despite the fact that it contained no foul language or personal attacks of any kind). My post has been delayed will be reviewed when it is "convenient."

If they go by name and/or email address, you guys will see this (and I will re-post anonymously, as I copied my response before submitting it). If they go by IP address, I guess I'm screwed.

So much for "Protest is Patriotism" and all that crap about freedom of expression. For the record, I am not a Republican, nor have I ever voted for one (including Bush). But my post will probably be censored because my views contradict their own. Ha.

-A

(Guess they don't flag by IP address. Here is the post the webmaster -- or perhaps even the band -- didn't want you to read.)

"do you really think about the iraq as a first step? half of the regimes in the area (saudi arabia, jordania, egypt, pakistan) are ALLYS of the usa."

Four nations is not half the Middle East. And Iraq is a first step; Syria or Iran will probably be next (though I would rather invade France :) ).

"the attacks were a reaction to the involvement of spanish and british forces in iraq."

My point is that attacks -- even ones worse than these -- were happening well before the war.

"about the kurds: where do you have this numbers from? if you can proof this numbers, i'll have to give up this argument."

I hope you're kidding . . . (sigh). Okay . . .

"The U.S.-led occupation authority in Iraq has said that at least 300,000 people are buried in mass graves in Iraq. Human rights officials put the number closer to 500,000, and some Iraqi political parties estimate more than 1 million were executed":
http://www.signonsandiego.com/news/world/iraq/memorial/20031210-1116-iraq-executions.html

"Human Rights Watch estimates that Saddam's 1987-1988 campaign of terror against the Kurds killed at least 50,000 and possibly as many as 100,000 Kurds": http://www.whitehouse.gov/infocus/iraq/news/20030404-1.html

61,000 in Baghdad alone (first article again): http://www.signonsandiego.com/news/world/iraq/memorial/20031210-1116-iraq-executions.html

A special grave containing women and children, including toddlers clutching toys: http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/3738368.stm

"Human rights organizations estimate that more than 300,000 people, mainly Kurds and Shiite Muslims, were killed and buried in mass graves during Saddam's 23-year rule": http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,179819,00.html

"if the us-government started to care more about their image in the world - not by PR-Actions, but by real measures to eliminate poverty- the usa themselves would be safer."

This is a classic example of convincing yourself that The Man is lying to you and you know what's really going on. How should we eliminate poverty? Foreign aid? Doesn't work. What does work? According to an extensive study on wealth disparities between rich and poor countries conducted by UCLA Professor Richard Roll (as well as an earlier assertion by Nobel-winning economist Milton Friedman, "Political freedoms go hand-in-hand with economic development." Democracy is an important factor in the economic prosperity of the majority of wealthy countries.

Sounds like we're doing exactly what you request.

"you may be manipulated by the propaganda of your government."

Or by the evil propaganda of fact and logic, as opposed to irrational emotion and catchy little platitudes.

"about me being ridiculous: at what point am i ridiculous?"

The point at which you expect no financial hardship imposed by war AND you accuse the administration of having no plan to end the war. Also, you make reference to the war being against international law. What about Saddam's violations -- which, I might add, no one else planned to do anything about?

"the current us-government spends lots of money on the war on iraq and on the so called homeland security, but not much for the common people. do you know that money that should be used to . . ."

Stop right there. I know you're not American, so you may not have an extensive knowledge of our Constitution, but the only thing the Fed is authorized to spend money on is defense (as in the military). The city and state governments had the responsibility of maintaining their deiches (the word is "dikes" or "levees," in case you're still interested), and they failed miserably. Don't blame Bush.

"do you know that the us-army at the moment would not be able to counter a north korean attack on south korea, because too many us-soldiers are in iraq, prepare to go there or just came back from there and are not combat ready?"

Not only did I not know this, I have serious doubts regarding its validity. Where did you read this? You can't make such a claim (one that would be statistically verifiable) without some sort of proof. If you can back this up -- like I did with the Kurds -- I'll concede on this point.

"you said that you've just finished college."

No, I think you assumed that. I finished a couple years ago and have worked on indie films and waited tables for a while, so I'm not the rich, it's-not-my-problem conservative you think I am. I'm 25 and make less than you think.

"for you it is probably easy to be somehow pro-bush, when it comes to interior issues, but what about all the others whose parents can't effort college?"

See above for the "easy to be . . . pro-Bush" response. As for my education, you are mistaken in assuming that my parents bankrolled my education. I worked hard to stay in school, about 30 hours a week (add that to a full course load) and student loans that I'll be paying off for years.

In America, too many people have what talk show host and political writer Larry Elder calls a "victicrat" mentality: They do not feel responsible for their own lives, and they want things given to them for nothing.

Healthcare is not a right. Education is not a right. We need to take a little responsibility and WORK for these things.

-A

I tried to re-post. No luck. Still censored (though the message says it will only be done the first time you post -- ha ha).

@Alex: WTF??!!
@webmaster: this really sux! why do you prevent us from having a proper discussion? freedom of speech and stuff. come on, stop this!

we are checking with the master of the web. i am sure there is just some sort of mistake. we are checking on this. josh

I’m in no way a bush supporter, but Alex’s "accidental" censorship strikes me as suspicious.

scrooge, read again, the posts are there. it's a christmas miracle!

Nobody is being censored here. This forum is open to any and all views and opinions. We looked into the allegation and this is what we found out.

This weblog got definite blog spam today (just like email spam except in the form of comments on a blog). The machine that publishes the comments automatically filters out spam. It takes likely spam comments and flags them for approval. Your comments got flagged for approval. We just read them and published them because they are not spam. We will publish ALL flagged comments that are not spam. Here is why yours was flagged.

Your comment had several HTML links in it. Comments with lots of links are likely to be spam. Anything with 3 or more links is likely to be flagged. It has nothing what-so-ever to do with content. You could write about f*#$*@^ your communist pet donkey while eating peanut butter and torturing innocent civilians if you want to (see I just did) and it will be published. The settings we have on this site are simply to control link spam.

By the way, it is rather annoying when people trump up false censorship charges every time their comment doesn't go through. We don't care enough about your opinion to censor you. Our pet robot just thought you were pushing penis pills and fake mortgages on our readers. Thanks for your concern.

Opps(snicker snicker) i accidentally censored your post. silly me. try the magic words next time: liberal is right (ironic, i know)

whi did you torture? i think i know that commie donkey, wasn't he in animal farm? remember him? josh

WTF? What if i want to push penis pills, you fascist? tell your sex toy pet robot to mind his damn business. It is my bloody American right to pedal prick pills to anyone I want to. Josh bought two bottles just yesterday.

@alex: i wrote about two hours on a response to your posting when my computer crashed and and i lost it all. i'm too frustrated to write everything again.
just the most important things: according to the microsoft encarta there are 15 countries in the middle east. between the half and two thirds of them are allies of the usa, i'm not really sure about some of the smaller emirates on the arabian peninsula. only two of them are democracies(Israel and Turkey). so about half of the us-allies in this region are more or less unpleasant non-democratic societies. so us-foreign policy isn't very consequent.

i fully accept your numbers about the people killed by the saddam regime, but now i really wonder why nobody did something against it earlier.

about korea: i read it in time magazine or some german news magazine. i don't have access to their online archives, so i can't give you a link. still i am really sure about this one. i don't make up something like this. s
till i found some numbers: 3/5 of the us landforces are in one way or an other involved in iraq(coming from there, being there or preparing to go there). if they need more than half of their troops for one war, how could they fight another one?

about economical developement and democracy: there is no democratic modell-nation in the arabian world, so i'm not convinced that the results of this study would be usefull in this part of the world. there is no democratic tradition in the countries of the middle east, whereas it was easier for democratic ideas in latin america due to the heavy european influence.

about the bombings of london and madrid: the attacks before the iraq war(daresalam, nairobi, WTC) were Al Qaeda attacks. there was never a proof for for a connection between Al Qaeda and the saddam regime. so the demise of the saddam government did probably not hurt Al Qaeda but only made it stronger by getting houndreds of volunteers in the insurection against the us-occupation.
the recent attacks in Europe were probably a direct result of the war on Iraq(esp. Madrid).

about my wrong assumptions about your college time and career: okay, i talked bullshit here it just looked so much like it in your first postings. you have my full respect for handling college and work at the same time, i have troubles with university alone. still i'm not bankrolled by my parents either, fortunately university in germany is still free and i get a grant.

about healthcare: i think healthcare is a right. in fact caring for each other is one of the basic things that divide human beings from animals. people normally don't get sick or injured on purpose. getting a proper medical treatment should not be based on how much people earn.
same thing with education: as i said you have my respect for handling college and work at the same time. but this is really hard. you did it. great. but to do this you must really be a clever guy. good for you. it is not just, that people who aren't that clever(but still not stupid!) from families in a good financial situation can get a college education, while people from families that are worse of can't, even if they are as smart as the ones from the richer families.

about New Orleans: i didn't know that, seems like i cited a popular leftist myth. i read this one several times on the internet. thank you for giving me the right words.

overall: it's really hard for me to admit, but now - knowing the numbers about the genocides in iraq, i can't hold on to my strict anti-war-believes. thank you. really.
still i think that the way bush started the war(lying about wmd's or saddams relation to Al Qaeda) was really bad. also i still think that, they had no proper plan what to do with the iraq after the war. they thought that it would be quite an easy task and this was a complete miscalculation. this miscalculation has a lot of negative effects.
i was never one of the people that said "get the us-troops immediatley out of iraq", because this would be the worst thing for the people living there, but i doubt that they will be able to establish a durable democracy there. but even a egypt-styled dictatorship would be much better than the saddam regime.
i strongly disagree with you about healthcare and education. but maybe this is not a question about wrong or right, but a question of mentality!

so are you guys friends on myspace yet so you can set up a make out date.

Gene: I'm not on MySpace, but next time I'm in Germany (or Andy is stateside), we will do our best to set up a makeout date. I'll try to get pictures to you if one of us has a camera. Filthy, pornographic pictures of us fornicating wildly with a talking pinko donkey.

Webmaster: Sorry if you were offended or annoyed by my suspicion. It's just that I've been in situations (read: college) where someone with a decidedly non-leftist opinion is often ignored or told to stop wasting everyone else's time, while someone with a leftist opinion can talk at great length without such harrassment. You can see how I might get suspicious when the website of a band comprising dirty commie bastards (I love you guys) suddenly starts reviewing my posts for approval. Anyway, sorry.

Andy: It was really inspiring to read your post. I know many people -- not just leftists and authoritarians, but also right-wingers and libertarians -- who are mindless ideologues and refuse to change their opinion of anything political. This sometimes comes not just from pride, but also from a certain attachment to one's beliefs (akin to not wanting to accept that a relationship just isn't working out). Knowing that there are other people like me who are willing to change their opinions -- if not their beliefs -- makes all those "for-fun" political debates worthwhile in a larger sense. Thanks.

On democracy: Yeah, it sucks that we have allies with governments similar to Saddam's regime. I guess part of why we chose him had to do with genocide, and the rest was probably the fact that Saudi Arabia, et al, are our allies and he was anything but. However, I think that if Iraq prospers -- and I believe it will -- it may very well give the Saudis and other Middle-Eastern populations an idea or two about where they need to be.

On Korea: I don't necessarily disbelieve you; I'm sure that if you say you read it in a major news source, you did (I was worried you read it on some blog or perhaps it was hearsay). If that is the case -- as unlikely as it is that Kim Jong-Il will start a war with us anytime soon -- it is alarming. I plan on researching this. (Of course, how many wars can one nation be expected to fight at the same time?) I can see how this would disturb you.

On a model for democracy: I can see why you would be hesitant to do this with no model for success, but we have to start somewhere, right? Additionally, I think the need for democracy in that area as a facilitator of economic development and financial creativity will grow exponentially when the world starts to move away from oil (some nations, such as Saudi Arabia, have been looking into possibilities for a new economic backbone for decades). I believe they will need democracy much more in the next fifty years than they have for the past fifty.

On bombings and the questionable connection between Saddam and Al Qaeda: I think you are forgetting something the administration has tried to emphasize (though not very effectively, as I find myself reminding people about every other day). And that is that this is the War on Terror, not the War on Al Qaeda. Is Al Qaeda stronger? Perhaps, but I don't think so: They've been more or less on the run since Afghanistan. And I think similar attacks (if not in the same places) would have happened were we not fighting a war on terrorism. Maybe worse.

On college: No problem; I just wanted to clear everything up. Good luck with your own education -- and I must say you are pretty articulate for a college student who learned English as a secondary language. I'm quite impressed.

On healthcare as a right: This is a topic that could take up a whole new thread, so I won't dive into it. All I know is it's an all-or-nothing deal: Healthcare in the US only became less accessible when the government got involved (starting after WWII), and I think the only solutions are A) let government run it entirely, which is unconstitutional and runs counter to my own beliefs; or B) take the government out entirely and let capitalism work its price-lowering, one-in-every-home magic to make it affordable for everyone and not a compulsory expense for anyone. And education . . . well, that's yet another thread, but the capitalist phenomenon of competitive pricing and service still applies, and I don't trust the government to educate my kids (when I have them). If FedEx and UPS consistently outperform the USPS in parcel delivery -- meaning the government can't do the job as well -- why would I trust Uncle Sam over the private sector in education?

On New Orleans: You're welcome.

Overall: Like I said before, thanks. I have a little email forum going with friends across the country (we jokingly refer to it as PoliSci Fight Club). Let me know if you're interested.

On the length of this post: Sorry everyone.

-A

to stop sleeping with nathan

@Alex: no hard feelings and thank you for the good discussion. i'd love to discuss with you in your polisci fight club, but i have to admit that i'm probably not enough into american politics for that. you know, i gather bits of information from time to time, but my main interest isn't focused on that. probably it is the same with you about german politics.
but, hey, i'm looking forward to other discussions on this page... i'm quite sure we'll have some more in the future.

collin and jason....get a fucking (!!!!) job. censor that, bitches! :)

Collin and Jason, get a job?

Have you seen how much goddamn time Andy and I have pissed away here?

Anyway, I think it's great that members of the band check out these comments . . . and I would love to get into it with one of you guys some time.

The left-leaning socialist musician in a debate with a right-leaning libertarian fan? Fucking awesome, I say.

-A

to donkey: why? everyone else does.

asuka hentai manga sexy manga women

pussy simpson manga lisa hentai manga in english

bdsm tortured blonde simpsons bdsm

spanked teens teen tit

free xxx milf clips hottest milf seeker com

gay bdsm gay fetish gay dungeon pandora peaks bdsm

big dick asian shemales nefertiti shemale

big dick asian shemales nefertiti shemale

voluptuous tits morphed tits

tcmh

hardcore brunette porn hardcore squirting The judge who put coded messages in his Da Vinci Code plagiarism trial ruling has written another...

redhead in black panties redhead shemale guy Social networking site MySpace is to block users from uploading copyrighted music to its pages...

mature strip granny pics mature Pop trio Atomic Kitten will reform to play a concert in support of jailed Liverpool football fan Michael Shields...

loan money private loan money private

Jonathan Ross is dubbed "risque" by Ofcom but not in breach of rules over an interview with David Cameron...

Classical singer Russell Watson postpones his forthcoming UK tour after undergoing brain surgery...

Alec Baldwin asks for his voice to be removed from an "unfair" documentary about Arnold Schwarzenegger...

Alec Baldwin asks for his voice to be removed from an "unfair" documentary about Arnold Schwarzenegger...

William Styron, whose Holocaust novel Sophie's Choice became a film and an opera, has died, aged 81...

Doctor Who takes three prizes at the National Television Awards in a repeat of its success last year...

Madonna says she may adopt another child from abroad following her proposed adoption of a Malawian boy...

handbooks Knutson incarcerate autopilot alike Desmond contest .

The Rolling Stones cancel a gig in Hawaii and postpone other tour dates as Mick Jagger suffers throat troubles...

The Rolling Stones cancel a gig in Hawaii and postpone other tour dates as Mick Jagger suffers throat troubles...

The Rolling Stones cancel a gig in Hawaii and postpone other tour dates as Mick Jagger suffers throat troubles...

William Styron, whose Holocaust novel Sophie's Choice became a film and an opera, has died, aged 81...

Pop trio Atomic Kitten will reform to play a concert in support of jailed Liverpool football fan Michael Shields...

Alec Baldwin asks for his voice to be removed from an "unfair" documentary about Arnold Schwarzenegger...

TV presenter Chris Tarrant is given an official police caution for common assault following an incident in a restaurant...

TV presenter Chris Tarrant is given an official police caution for common assault following an incident in a restaurant...